Page 13 of A Duchess Bound
“Reeds,” the Duke of Sarsen greeted. “How good to see you again.”
His Grace had always seemed to take himself a little too seriously in Dorothy’s opinion. It was as if proper etiquette had been carved into every aspect of his being, all the way down to his bones.
But Catherine was happily married to him. Her joy mattered more than anything else.
“Of course,” His Grace continued. “I imagine that it is really Catherine who you are happy to see.”
“You cannot possibly fault me for being happy to see my sister,” Elias said, embracing Catherine.
“Especially not when you have sisters of your own,” Bridget said.
“Yes,” the Duke of Sarsen said. “Soon, it will be their first Season. How are you enjoying yours, my lady?”
“It is pleasant,” Bridget said, her eyes sweeping across the ballroom floor.
A lively waltz had begun, and the couples eagerly converged on the dance floor.
“I imagine you have good prospects,” Catherine said.
“She does,” Dorothy said, “along with some less desirable prospects.” Dorothy’s throat grew dry when she thought about one specific undesirable prospect. She had let that man kiss her.
Worse, she kept thinking about the kiss. It had been two weeks since that night, and Dorothy was certain that her thoughts had turned to the Duke of Greenway at least twice a day since then. That was at least twenty-eight occasions upon which she had contemplated that detestable man’s affections, and that was twenty-eight occasions too many.
“I should like to talk to you about it,” Catherine said. “In theory, I know what is required to see a lady into her first Season, but I am certain that there are some matters which I have simply not considered.”
Dorothy smiled wryly. “The first rule of seeing a lady through her first Season is to anticipate everything going wrong.”
“That is how all my Seasons went,” Catherine said slyly. “Until my dear husband rescued me, like Lancelot coming to save Queen Guinevere.”
“I shall leave both of you to your conversations,” His Grace said. “Lady Bridget, may I have the first dance with you?”
She curtsied. “I would be delighted, Your Grace.”
Bridget shyly accepted his offered arm, and they crossed the floor and joined the ring of dancers.
“So,” Catherine said, smiling. “Shall we take a walk about the room and discuss Bridget’s first Season?”
“Yes,” Dorothy said.
“I will see you both later,” Elias said, grinning. “I have some business matters to discuss with a few gentlemen. It is good to see you again, Catherine.”
“Likewise.”
As their brother set about to join his friends, Catherine linked her arm with Dorothy’s. “So,” Catherine said cheerfully. “How is the Season going?”
“Well,” Dorothy said. “This is Bridget’s second ball, and the first one went well. Her dance card was full, and she never lacked for potential suitors. A couple of them have come to call.”
“That is good!” Catherine exclaimed. “I anticipated that Bridget would do well in her Season. She is a beautiful girl.”
“She is.” Dorothy paused. “Truthfully, the most difficult part of it all is trying to dissuade the less desirable suitors from pursuing her. There are so many of them!”
Catherine nodded sympathetically. “I do not recall such perils during my own Season, but I have heard other ladies mention them. It does seem as if the rakes are more plentiful than usual.”
“Indeed.”
Dorothy glanced about the ballroom. To her horror, she realized she was searching for the Duke of Greenway. She swallowed hard.
She was only searching for him for Bridget’s sake. That was it. Dorothy wanted to ensure that the wretched man was not vexing her poor, innocent sister, who had naively agreed to share a dance with him in the hopes of keeping the peace between them. The poor girl did not realize that dancing with a rake even once would be treated as an invitation to do much more.
